Portal Exclusive: Here are the kinds of career opportunities Blockchain Technology offer

Since Blockchain Technology is rapidly growing, students can get ample opportunities across various domains such as healthcare, tourism and supply chain, writes Gurudutt S Nayak

With the rise of cryptocurrency bitcoin, blockchain has gained prominence as a technology disruptor. Blockchain is a distributed database capable of storing any type of record. Users in a blockchain network have access to edit only the parts of the blockchain that they own whereas any other user with access to the same can solely view the data. This makes the network secure and transparent. Bitcoin, a form of electronic cash, was invented by anonymous persons using the name Satoshi Nakamoto and was released in 2009. Bitcoins gained acceptance as rewards for record-keeping services known as mining. However, due to the advent of the usage of bitcoins for illegal transactions, thefts from exchanges and price volatility, there has been widespread criticism on the same with regulatory authorities across the globe issuing investor alerts. While bitcoins have proved that blockchain technology can be used to implement digital currency; the uncertainty, illiquidity, and volatility, make it a risky proposition.

It should also be noted that blockchain is not bitcoin but serves as the core technology that allows the latter to be operated. Blockchain serves as a trusted network to handle transactions with known parties, unlike bitcoin that functions as an anonymous network. While there are serious concerns regarding digital currency as stated earlier, there should also be cognizance towards deploying future applications using blockchain technology that may improve transparency in private and public sectors. By eliminating foreign exchange and transactional costs, blockchain could even the odds for smaller consumer organisations. It can enhance their ability to compete at a global level. Companies such as MasterCard as well as Visa have begun to explore possibilities of digital currencies as a crucial part of their business models. In this regard, they have invested considerably in blockchain technology to take advantage of speed and efficiency that the technology renders. A maturer form of blockchain technology for the digital currency may lead to addressing possible concerns thereby paving the way to acceptance of the digital currency.

Today, blockchain is rapidly garnering interest similar to cloud computing in the 2000s and is one of the most popular technologies offering career opportunities. According to Blockchain Research Institute, blockchain technology skills have a high demand in the US and India. According to Gartner, the market potential for blockchain technology is expected to exceed USD 3.1 trillion by 2030. Upwork’s list of fastest-growing skills (Q1, 2018) listed blockchain as the number one skill, recording a 6000% growth across the past three quarters. Also, there have been over 9000 job listings worldwide on LinkedIn’s job search tool using 'blockchain' as the keyword. Blockchain is being considered as a promising technology in various areas such as smart contracts, record keeping, securities across various domains named finance, healthcare, tourism, supply chain, legal, to name a few. To explore possibilities in the development and adoption of blockchain in various organisations, working professionals and freshers who can strategise, develop and implement blockchain solutions are in high demand. Various career opportunities are opening such as blockchain project manager, blockchain designer, blockchain quality engineer, blockchain attorney or legal consultant, blockchain intern, etc.

With the blockchain technology continuously evolving, more opportunities are bound to open up. While it would be impossible to predict how it may shape out, professionals with knowledge in blockchain technology would likely be in high demand in the years to come.

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